• goals:

  • Responsible use of energy and natural resources

  • Maintenance of biodiversity

  • Preservation of regional ecological balances

  • Enhancement of soil fertility

  • Maintenance of water quality

• produced without:

  • added chemicals,

  • pesticides,

  • herbicides,

  • fertilizers,

  • antibiotics,

  • hormones,

  • food additives

• Prohibition of the use of GMOs

• Forbidding the use of ionising radiation

• Limiting the use of artificial fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides

• Prohibiting the use of hormones and restricting the use of antibiotics to only when necessary for animal health

This means that organic producers need to adopt different approaches to maintaining soil fertility and animal and plant health including:

• Crop rotation

• Cultivation of nitrogen fixing plants and other green manure crops to restore the fertility of the soil

• Prohibition of use of mineral nitrogen fertilisers

• To reduce the impact of weeds and pests, organic farmers choose resistant varieties and breeds and techniques encouraging natural pest control

• Encourage the natural immunological defence of animals

• In order to maintain animal welfare and health, organic producers need to prevent overstocking

They also help to build public trust as they ensure that organically farmed animals are kept separate from non-organic. Examples: 

• Abiding by organic principles:

  • Farmers have to provide 100% organic feed to their animals to market their products as organic

  • The feed should be obtained from the farm where the animals are or from farms close

  • Cloning animals and or transferring embryos is strictly forbidden

  • Growth promoters and synthetic amino-acids are prohibited

  • Natural methods of reproduction must be used, artificial insemination is however allowed

• Animal welfare:

  • Personnel keeping animals must possess the necessary basic knowledge and skills regarding the health and welfare needs of the animals

  • Attention to housing conditions, husbandry practices, respect of set stocking densities and minimum surfaces for indoor and outdoor areas

  • The number of livestock must be limited to minimise overgrazing, erosion, or pollution caused by animals or by the spreading of their manure

  • Animals should have, whenever possible, access to open air or grazing areas

  • Hormones or similar substances are not permitted, unless as a form of veterinary therapeutic treatment for an individual animal

  • The use of immunological veterinary medicines is permitted

• Separation of processed organic products in time and space from non-organic ones

•  minimum organic content of 95% of organic agricultural ingredients and strict conditions for the remaining 5% to be labelled as organic using the organic logo

• clear rules on labelling and on which products can and cannot use the organic logo

• specific limits to the substances which can be added to food and feed and a limited list of approved additives and processing aids to be used in organic production

Processed food shall be produced mainly from agricultural ingredients only (added water and cooking salt are not taken into account). They may also contain:

• preparations of microorganisms and enzymes, mineral trace elements, additives, processing aids and flavourings, vitamins, as well as amino acids can be used but only when authorised under organic rules

• substances and techniques which reconstitute properties that are lost in processing or storage, that correct any negligence in the processing, or that otherwise may be misleading on the true nature or the products, shall not be used

• non-organic agricultural ingredients can only be used if they are authorised within the annexes to the legislation or have been provisionally authorised by an EU country

And above all, any substance listed for use in organic agriculture must be compliant with horizontal EU rules and then thoroughly assessed and approved by the European Commission for use in organics. 

Farm to Fork aims to make 25% of EU farming organic

Regulations

• organic production rules

  • prohibition of GMOs

  • forbidding the use of ionising radiation

  • no artificial fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides

  • prohibiting hormones, restricting antibiotics (only for animal health)

  • crop rotation - important for soil health

• rules on livestock

  • organic principles: cloning, methods of reproduction, feeding, animal welfare

    • organic feed for the animals

    • no non-organically raised animals in the same space

    • animals must be in open air spaces

    • no hormones or other substances allowed

  • food chain rules

    • organic foods cannot be brought into contact with non-organic food

      • production must be organised to make sure this happens (clear labelling, etc.)

  • strict rules regarding use of harmful substances (allowed in some cases but very limited)

This makes it easier for EU based consumers to identify organic products and helps farmers to market them across all EU countries. 

The logo can only be used on products that have been certified as organic by an authorised control agency or body → they have fulfilled strict conditions on how they are produced, transported and sold. 

The logo can only be used on products when they contain at least 95% organic ingredients and respect further strict conditions for the remaining 5%. The same ingredient cannot be present in organic and non-organic form. 

Certification number and location of production must be shown on the product

The logo must be used by all pre-packaged EU food products, produced and sold as organic within the EU. 

Additionally, the logo can be used by:

• imported products where the product conforms to the EU rules on the import of organic goods

• non pre-packaged organic products

• EU organic products placed on third country markets

• as part of information campaigns intended to educate the public about the organics scheme 

The logo cannot be used for:

• products containing less than 95% organic ingredients

• mass catering operations such as restaurants or hospitals

• products not in the scope of organic rules such as cosmetics or products from hunting and fishing

• products in ‘conversion’ (where organic methods have only just been introduced and there may still be non-organic substances in the soil or animal chain)

• Organic agriculture does not use synthetic pesticides and fertilisers → organic food has high polyphenol content. 

• 1st hypothesis: considers the impact of the different fertilisation practices on plant metabolism. Due to the fact that synthetic fertilisers offer more bioavailable sources of nitrogen, plant development is accelerated, and all plant resources go to growth purposes and not to the production of polyphenols. 

• 2nd hypothesis: related to the plant exposure to stressful situations resulted from the absence of pesticides (attacks from insects, weeds and plant pathogens) leading to an increase of natural defence substances, like phenolic compounds.  

Nutritional aspects of plant and animal origin food products.

• The total amount of plant nutrients (specifically nitrogen) is lower in organic compared to conventional farming because it uses natural fertilisers. However, the nutritional value of organic crops is slightly higher than normal ones, especially in phenolic compounds, vitamins and minerals. 

• Higher carotenoid in some vegetables (sweet peppers, tomatoes, carrots). 

• Higher levels of proteins and AAs in conventionally produced grain. But the quality of the AAs was higher in the organic products → more essential AAs are available in organic foods. 

• More antioxidants, more dry matter, vitamin C, secondary substances, total sugars, mineral compounds, essential AAs. 

• Less beta-carotene, nitrates and pesticide residues. 

• Organic farming promotes the accumulation of potassium in zucchini. 

• The concentration of phenolic compounds is 20% higher in organic crops. They are defined as secondary metabolites, are the most widely occurring phytochemical, and have important antioxidant properties. 

• Organic milk:

  • 50% higher content of omega-3 fatty acids compared to conventional milk because the grass and clover have more omega-3 content fatty acids. 

  • No significant differences in total saturated fatty acid and monounsaturated fatty acid concentrations between organic and normal. 

  • Organic milk has a more desirable fatty acid composition than normal milk, has higher alpha-tocopherol and iron, but lower iodine and selenium concentrations. 

  • Organic milk has superior quality of lipid fractions, essential AAs, vitamin, salt and mineral content, and omega-3 PUFAs, due to a higher content of grass and roughage in the feed of cows. 

• Meat:

  • Organic meat has more essential fatty acids, with a higher proportion of polyunsaturated fats, favourable to human health. They also have more omega-3, but not as much as fish. 

• Eggs:

  • Organic eggs have a lower quantity of protein, but the biological value of proteins and lecithin content are higher compared to normal ones. 

Organic food products and human health. 

• Organic foods have higher polyphenol content. Phenolic compounds have anticarcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antihypertensive, immune modulating, cardioprotective, vasodilatory and analgesic properties. 

• There are few studies related to the actual effects of organic food products on human health. 

• Water and land pollution: breeding and raising cattle cause major problems with water and land contamination. Rivers, lakes, ponds and reservoirs are polluted. Animal manure pollutes land and water surrounding animal feeds with contaminants like nitrogen, nitrates, phosphorus, antibiotics, pesticides and hormones that pollute land and water. 

• Air quality: odorous air emissions from animal feeding operations contain compounds like ammonia, hydrogen sulphate, methane and CO2 → they pollute the air. Ammonia can be deposited in surface waters, causing eutrophication (the depletion of oxygen and quick growth of plants and algae in water). Animals produce gaseous pollutants like nitrous oxide and CO2 and methane (has 15 times the environmental impact of CO2). 

• Soil quality: the enormous demand for grain and feed for animal agriculture can result in soil erosion and topsoil depletion in cropland, affecting soil fertility. Pastureland can suffer from overgrazing when densities of animals are high. Overgrazing causes degradation or erosion of the land due to soil compaction and decreased plant cover. In turn, poor soil quality reduces air quality as dust is carried away by winds. 

• Water usage: 70% of all water on the planet is used for agriculture and animal farming. The amount of water needed to produce 1 kg of animal protein is 100 times more than that needed to produce 1 kg of grain protein. 

• Food production: energy is required to grow food for cattle due to the fertiliser and irrigation systems used to produce the food.

• The transport of the corn to the feedlot burns fossil fuels and emits pollutants into the air. 

• The clearing of trees, grass and other natural structures during the building of a farm and livestock operation facilities contribute to GHGs emissions and the deterioration of the environment. 

• Transport: fossil fuels are used to transport the livestock to slaughterhouses. 

• The preservation, processing and packaging of processed meats is highly pollutant. 

Because small farmers individually face relatively high inspection costs and administrative burdens linked to organic certification, a system of group certification is introduced and defined, reflecting the needs and resource capacity of these farmers.

The degree to which animal products are excluded varies depending on the specific diet adopted:

• A lacto-ovo vegetarian diet includes dairy products and eggs + plant-based foods

• A lacto vegetarian diet includes only dairy products + plant-based foods

• A ovo vegetarian diet includes only eggs + plant-based foods

• A vegan diet includes plant-based foods exclusively; individuals following this diet strive to exclude any animal-derived products from their diet and lifestyle

Designations for people who follow mostly a vegetarian diet but occasionally include certain types of meat:

• A pescatarian diet excludes all meat except fish, it can include eggs or dairy products

• A flexitarian diet is primarily vegetarian but people occasionally eat meat

Pros: animal welfare, ethics, the environment, less expensive. 

Health. 

Cardiovascular disease:

• Compared to omnivores, vegetarians tend to weigh less, have lower saturated fat intake, lower total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, and higher fibre intake, they are also less likely to suffer from hypertension. 

• Overall energy intake is significantly greater from meat-based diets compared to vegetarian or vegan diets → vegetarians/vegans have a lower overall BMI → reduces the risk of obesity. 

Cancer: 

• Eating fruits, vegetables and other items of a vegetarian/vegan diet reduce the risk of cancers of the lung, stomach, oesophagus and mouth. 

• Red meat consumption is linked with colorectal cancer risk. 

• Vegetarians and vegans have lower levels of secondary bile acids compared to omnivores. They are potentially carcinogenic → higher levels increase the risk for colorectal cancer. 

• Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) is a hormone involved in cellular growth and stimulation of growth hormone. It can play a role in reproductive cancer and is affected by dietary intake. 

Diabetes:

• Vegetarians have a lower risk of developing type II diabetes than omnivores, vegans have less risk than both groups.

• Plant-based diets can reduce risk for type II diabetes by one third. 

Osteoporosis:

• Vegans have less bone density than omnivores and vegetarians  

Nutritional benefits: increased intakes of fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, fibre, vitamines C and E, folic acid, potassium, magnesium, copper, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. They have decreased intakes and levels of cholesterol and saturated fat. 

Cons: labour exploitation in agriculture, higher demand and prices with low supply, lack of certain nutrients, digestive issues and stomach discomfort. 

• Foods associated with a larger reduction in disease risk for one health outcome are often associated with larger reductions in disease risk for other health outcomes. 

• Foods with lower impacts on one metric of environmental harm tend to have lower impacts on others

• Of the foods associated with improved health, all except fish have among the lowest environmental impacts, and fish has markedly lower impacts than red meats and processed meats. 

• Food associated with the largest negative environmental impacts (red meat) are consistently associated with the largest increases in disease risk. 

Analysis: 

• Dietary choices determine human health and environmental sustainability.

• 9 of the top 15 risk factors for global morbidity come from poor dietary quality. Diseases associated with poor dietary quality account for 40% of global mortality. 

• Agricultural food production emits ~30% of glocal greenhouse gases, occupies ~40% of Earth’s land, causes nutrient pollution that alters ecosystems and water quality, and accounts for ~70% of Earth’s fresh-water withdrawals from rivers and groundwater. 

• 5 diet-dependent health outcomes in adults: CHD, type II diabetes, stroke, colorectal cancer, mortality

• 5 environmental outcomes: GHG emissions, land use, scarcity-weighted water use, and 2 forms of nutrient pollution, acidification and eutrophication. 

• 15 food groups: chicken, dairy, eggs, fish, fruits, legumes, nuts, olive oil, potatoes, processed red meat, refined grain cereals, sugar-sweetened beverages, unprocessed red meat, vegetables and whole grain cereals. 

Health outcomes of food groups:

• No food associated with a significant reduction in disease risk for one health outcome was associated with a significant increase in disease risk for any other health outcome. 

• Nuts, minimally processed whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, olive oil and fish are associated with significantly reduced mortality and reduced risk for one or more diseases. 

  • Consuming an additional serving per day of these foods is associated with a significant reduction in risk for 20 of the 34 health endpoints for these foods and no significant change in disease risk for 14 of the 34 health outcomes. 

• Daily consumption of an additional serving of dairy egg and chicken is not associated with disease incidence for 12 of the 14 health endpoints. 

• Consuming an additional 30g of refined grain cereals was not associated with a change in disease incidence, although consuming larger amounts of refined grain cereals is associated with increased risk of diabetes. Substituting whole grain cereals for refined grain cereals reduced the disease incidence. 

• Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, unprocessed red meat, and processed red meat are consistently associated with increased disease risk. 

• Sugar-sweetened beverages: increase risk of CHC, type II diabetes and stroke

• Unprocessed and processed red meatL increases the risk of the 5 health outcomes!

• Of all the foods examined, a daily serving of processed red meat is associated with the largest mean increase in risk of mortality and CHC, type II diabetes and stroke. 

Health outcomes of food groups:

• Mean scarcity-weighted water use per serving of food produced does not vary between the 15 foods. 

• Unprocessed red meat had TWICE the water impact of dairy, nuts, processed red meat (smaller serving size) and olive oil. 

• Minimally processed plant source foods, olive oil and sugar-sweetened beverages consistently have among the lowest environmental impacts for all indicators. 

• Dairy, eggs, fish and chicken have relative environmental impacts that range from 3 to 40 for GHGs, acidification, eutrophication and land use. 

• Producing a serving of unprocessed red meat has the highest impact for all 5 environmental indicators, with a relative environmental impact of 16 to 230. 

• Producing a serving of processed red meat has the second highest mean impact on acidification, GHG emissions and land use and the 3rd highest mean impact for eutrophication. 

• Consumption of leafy green vegetables is not associated with a reduction in type II diabetes risk, whereas some other vegetable has not. 

• Rice production emits more GHGs than other cereals because methane is produced when rice paddies are flooded. 

• For red meats, ruminant meat (beef, sheep, goat) has higher environmental impacts than pork because ruminant meat production uses more agricultural inputs than pork per unit of meat produced and because ruminants emit methane when digesting food. 

Associations between health and environmental outcomes:

• Foods associated with reductions in mortality consistently have a low averaged relative environmental impact. 

• Whole grain cereals, fruits, vegetables, nuts and olive oil have an AREI of 4 or less per serving. Fish has an AREI of 14 per serving → also associated with reduction in mortality. 

• Foods associated with a significant increase in mortality have variable environmental impact. 

• Unprocessed red meats (AREI = 73) and processed red meats (AREI = 37) have the highest AREIs while sugar-sweetened beverages (AREI = 0.95) have the lowest AREIs.